A citizen and a story of passion with porcelain and clay

Abdullah Heikal: This is how I made art from clay

• Structure: My work requires patience and many experiments and stages to reach the final shape and design and each piece carries a special value and meaning that distinguishes it.

  Photography: Eric Arrasas

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A story of passion that led the Emirati Abdullah Haikal to the world of ceramics and clay, as he was attracted by the clay that he began to shape with his fingers, transforming it into distinct pieces of art, and giving it after coloring a new aesthetic dimension.

Haykal's relationship with clay began since childhood, then over the years he tested this world through the workshops he attended, until he decided, during the Corona pandemic, to delve deeper into this world, to formulate from it artistic creations of various colors and shapes.

Heikal says about the beginning of his relationship with clay: “My talent for working on clay has grown since childhood, as playing with clay in the art class was one of my favorite activities, and my mother used to accompany me to attend ceramic classes, so I loved this manual work, but after a while I stopped doing it, then I returned to him with quarantine during the Corona pandemic, and I decided to return to making ceramics professionally.”

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Haikal's return to the world of ceramics was not without fatigue, as he decided to undergo several training courses on the pottery industry, noting that he relied on the pottery-making cupboard at the beginning of the quarantine period, after working for a while on making it manually and without the cupboard, before heading to Production of pieces bearing a special imprint, far from everything familiar in the field, and which are not available in shops and markets.

Regarding the basics that characterize the work on ceramics, Haikal pointed out that this work requires patience and many experiments and stages to reach the final shape and design, and that is why each piece carries a special value and meaning that distinguishes it, as it is produced manually, and the clay that forms it makes it one of the sustainable designs. .

As for the stages of work on the clay, he indicated that it starts from forming it on the wheel, then leaves the clay for two weeks until it dries and becomes solid, and then puts it in the oven and burns at a very high temperature, so the piece turns into porcelain, but it is not suitable for use in eating and drinking because it absorbs Liquids.

He stressed that the next stage, which is represented by coating the ceramics with the material "Al-Jalis", is what turns the ceramics into tools suitable for daily use.

As for the challenges facing working on clay, Heikal stressed that they start from the lack of spread of the craft, explaining that this work is considered an outsider, as the presence of pottery in the Emirates was initially limited to some exhibitions, especially pottery imported from India, as the number of Emirati potters is very few, as they learned This industry after importing parts from abroad.

He pointed out that there are some studios in Abu Dhabi that attract citizens to learn this artistic craft, noting that the test of work on this material turns into a passion and hobby immediately, because touching clay by hand involves a lot of positive emotions, and this is reflected in the final shape of the pieces. The psychological between the material and the one who makes it is the one who makes the story of each piece.

Potter surprises

The potter, according to Heikal, faces a number of surprises during his work. The creative Emirati potter says, "The clay sometimes surprises me, and the final product comes out differently from the initial product that I planned for. It is easy for the result during the burning process to be different from what was put in the oven," noting that Porcelain burns at a temperature that may exceed 2000 degrees, while the time varies inside the oven whether the potter wants to adopt slow or fast burning, noting that moderate burning is best, because slow burning may change the size of the piece while fast may cause the piece to explode if it is not completely dry .

Heikal works with a fixed government job, and for this he strives to coordinate between a craft that takes his passion, his profession and his job, noting that, after the Corona pandemic and remote work, it became clear that the job is supposed not to be restricted to specific hours, the important thing is to achieve, and for this he works seriously on ceramics and puts it among his priorities , but he avoids dereliction in his job or even in daily production.

He presents the structure of the pieces he produces in several studios, and through his personal page on Instagram.

Regarding the link between ceramics and heritage, Heikal pointed out that this craft did not exist, but it is considered an alien to the Emirates through trade, as after the entry of pottery pots from India and other countries, the ancestors began to learn the profession, and produce many pieces.

He pointed out that they mastered the craft, and presented distinctive pieces, and this is actually evidenced by the presence of many pieces in the Louvre Museum in Abu Dhabi, which are pieces found in the Emirate of Sharjah.

Porcelain uses

Pottery, one of the most famous crafts of all time, has many uses, from which vases, decorative figurines, and dishes are made.

Porcelain is also one of the modern industries taken from this craft.

In the architectural field, porcelain is used in floors and walls inside and outside homes, because it is a moisture and water resistant material.

• “Touching clay by hand involves a lot of positive feelings. The psychological link between the material and the person who makes it is the one who makes the story of each piece.”

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